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Quantitative AES. VI. Backscattering and backgrounds—an analysis of elemental systematics and corrections of absolute intensity
Author(s) -
Seah M. P.,
Gilmore I. S.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
surface and interface analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1096-9918
pISSN - 0142-2421
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9918(199809)26:10<723::aid-sia418>3.0.co;2-l
Subject(s) - atomic physics , auger , spectral line , beam (structure) , range (aeronautics) , auger electron spectroscopy , electron , atomic number , physics , chemistry , nuclear physics , materials science , optics , astronomy , composite material
An analysis is made of the backscattered background in true spectra from an AES digital Auger database in order to understand the systematics with atomic number. This is important for modelling details of the spectra and for determining the peak areas for Auger electron intensities. It is shown that the shape of the background in the emission energy range near 2500 eV, for spectra using electron beams of 5 or 10 keV energy, are accurately described by an exponential. This exponential has a characteristic energy of 1988 eV for 3⩽ Z ⩽83, for a 5 keV beam, but is a more complex function of Z , the atomic number, for a 10 keV beam. The absolute intensities at 2000 eV emission energy for the 5 keV beam and 2500 eV emission energy for the 10 keV beam are described by analytical functions, the deviations from which are 5% and 6%, respectively, attributed mainly to the effects of sample roughness. These deviations may be used to correct the measured databank Auger electron intensities generated using 5 keV and 10 keV electron beams. The ratio of these corrected intensities agrees with theory to 0.99±0.05. Without the roughness correction derived from this study of backgrounds, this ratio deteriorates to 1.02±0.07. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.